Wire-stretcher.



No. 779,214. PATENTED JAN. 8, 1905. 0. D. FUNK.

' WIRE STRBTGHER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 10, 1904.

W IYZVESSES: VVENTOR, J 2/ am 14% 4 M #4:: v

Patented January 3, 1905.

PATENT @EETQE.

OSCAR 1). FUNK, OF ROGERS, NEBRASKA.

WlRE-STRETCHER.

.SIPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 779,214, dated January 3, 1905.

To (oi/Z whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, OSCAR D. FUNK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Rogers, in the county of Colfax and State of Nebraska, have invented a new and useful Improvement in l/Vire-Stretchers, of which the following is a specification.

The aim of my invention is to provide a wire-stretcher which shall be simple of construction and be arranged to be easily attached to a supporting-post and a fence-wire in the operation to tighten a fence-wire, and my invention embodies certain other combinations to be described more fully hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings I have shown in Figure 1 a top view of the wire-stretcher embodying my invention. Fig. 2 shows a broken enlarged detail of the main operatinglever, while Fig. 3 discloses a detail of the yoke used in my invention.

In carrying out the aim of my invention I employa supporting-bar A, which bar at one end is provided with a perforation 21, containing the rings 22 and 24, as shown in Fig. 1. At the opposite end the bar is provided with the pin 29. supporting the loop 9, from which extends the hook 1]., provided with the claw 12, as clearly shown. Extending from the ring 22 is a chain 23, adapted to be secured to a suitable fencepostas 25, for instance. EX- tending from the ring 24 is an eye-provided bar 17, which has a flat extension 28 and an upwardly-extending lip 18, and to this flat extension 18 is secured the pin 0, supporting the lever 19, provided with a head 20, which head 20 is adapted to work against the lip 18 and between which head and lip is adapted to be pinched and clamped a fencewire, as 2. (Shown in Fig. 1.)

Sliding upon the supporting-bar A is a yoke 6, which yoke is provided with the boX 8, (shown in Fig. 3,) so as to provide a proper bearing upon the bar A. This yoke 6 is provided, as is shown'in Fig. 3, with the pin a, holding the end 6 of the rock-bar B, as is also shown in Fig. 1, while secured to the pin a is the link 7, provided with the perforation or eye 7, (shown in Fig. 3,) adapted to receive the'eye 0 of the bar 13, provided with the flat extension 26, also being provided with the upwardly-extending lip 14, against which the head 16 of the lever 15 works, the lever being supported upon the pin 0, as shown in Fig. 1. These levers 15 and 19 form clamps in connection with the lips 14 and 18, and in Fig. 1 of 'the drawings the fence-wire m is shown as clamped against the lip 14.

Secured to the pin 9, fixed to the bar A, is the lever C, which has its end split, as is shown at c in Fig. 2, so that the end of this operating-lever will stride the bar A, to which it is pivotally secured. This lever C is provided with a boss 5 considerably larger than the diameter of the bar B, so that this operating-lever may be freely rocked over the bar B, which it also strides, as shown in Fig. 2. Loosely mounted upon this bar B is a washer 4, also shown in Fig. 1, against which washer presses the coil-spring 3, working at its opposite end against the gripper-head 2, as shown in Fig. 2. This gripper-head 2 is pivoted to a pin f, working within the bars 1, pivoted, by means of the pin f, to the operating-handle C. This gripper-head is permitted to freely slide upon the rock-bar B.

In the use of this wire-stretcher should the fence-wire m be intended to be stretched and secured to a suitable fence-post the operator would secure the wire-stretcher by means of the chain 23 to the suitable fence-post 25, for instance. He would then by means of the clamping-lever 15 secure the fence-wire :0. In order to further secure the wire-stretcher, the same might be secured in fastening the clamplever 19 to a suitably-secured fence-wire .2, as shown in Fig.1. The operator would then carry the lever C forward in the direction of the post 25, which would result in the head 2 gripping the bar B, so that this bar would be carried forward, tightening the wire After the lever C has been carried forward as far as possible the movement of the lever would be reversed, in which action the spring3 would force the gripper-head 2 in a vertical position to freely slide over the bar B. However, as

soon as the operating-lever C is carried in the opposite direction the gripper-head again engages the rod B.

' supporting-chain secured to one end of said bar, a lever pivotally secured near the chainprovided end of said bar, a yoke slidably held upon said bar, a wire-clamp secured to said yoke, a rock-bar pivotally secured to said yoke, a gripper-head loosely sliding upon said rock-bar, a connecting-bar extending from said head to said lever, said lever being provided with an opening through which said rock-bar extends, and a spring surrounding said rock-bar and interposed between said gripper-head and said lever, as set forth.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

OSCAR D. FUNK.

-VVitnesses:

HARVEY M. PETERS, S. S. VVERTZ. 

